Working toward the inclusion of blind students in Malta : the case of mathematics classrooms

Basing ourselves on a case study in which one of us successfully taught mathematics to an adult blind student on a one-to-one basis and her more recent positive experience of teaching a blind student within a regular classroom, we try to shed light on the mathematics education of blind students and the ramifications that this carries for the inclusion of blind students in mathematics classrooms. The ensuing discussion is embedded within the inclusion discourse that is gradually evolving in educational spheres. Our paper ultimately carries a message of hope: not only can blind students learn mathematics and get certified for it, but it seems that they can also do so within a normal classroom situation.peer-reviewe

EVALUASI PENGENDALIAN INTERN PENGADAAN BERAS PADA PERUSAHAAN UMUM BADAN URUSAN LOGISTIK KANTOR WILAYAH SULAWESI UTARA DAN GORONTALO

Perkembangan dunia semakin modern sehingga sangat membutuhkan pengendalian intern dalam perusahaan agar dapat berjalan sebagaimana mestinya. Perum Bulog Kanwil Sulawesi Utara dan Gorontalo dalam pengadaan harus meningkatkan pengendalian internal untuk mencapai tujuan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk pengendalian intern pengadaan beras Perum Bulog Kanwil Sulawesi Utara dan Gorontalo dengan COSO. Metode penelitian yang digunakan yaitu metode deskriptif kualitatif dengan menggunakan wawancara dan dokumentasi sebagai pengumpulan data. Hasil dari penelitian menunjukan bahwa kelima komponen pengendalian intern yang telah di tetapkan Perum Bulog Kanwil Sulawesi Utara dan Gorontalo sudah efektif dan sesuai dengan pengendalian intern COSO.Kata Kunci: Evaluasi, Pengendalian Intern, Pengadaan Beras

Efisiensi Asuransi Syariah di Indonesia dengan Pendekatan Data Envelopment Analysis

The purpose of this study is to estimate the efficiency level of Islamic insurance companies in Indonesia. The data used are taken from each financial report of 14 Islamic life insurance companies and 12 Islamic general insurance in the period 2013-2015. Efficiency score estimation is done by using Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) method. There are three input variables, namely asset, load, claim payment and two output variables, namely income and tabarru\u27 funds obtained. The results show that islamic life insurance and islamic general insurance companies in Indonesia have not been operating efficiently

Cognitive reserve index and functional and cognitive outcomes in severe acquired brain injury: A pilot study

Background: Many variables affect outcome after brain injury. Cognitive reserve (CR) is a subjective factor that reflects a set of personal characteristics and that differentiates individuals. It may influence an individual’s capacity to react to brain injury. Objective: To study the effects of cognitive reserve on functional and cognitive outcome at the end of rehabilitation, in patients with severe acquired brain injury (sABI), by means of the Cognitive Reserve Index questionnaire (CRIq). Methods: We report a retrospective study of a continuous series of sABI patients on first admission to a rehabilitation center. Disability and cognitive outcomes were recorded. Results: In the 94 patients enrolled, the assessments after rehabilitation showed a significant gain measured with the disability Rating Scale for patients with a higher CR (CRIq≥ 85). A significant negative correlation was found: between CRIq scores and the interval elapsing before first access to neuropsychological assessment, between CRIq scores, especially level of education, and tests that measure the same domain (attention). Conclusions: Improvements in overall and cognitive disability emerged, but CR did not seem to substantially influence outcome in this sample of patients. This result may be partly due to the clinical severity of the population studied and the sample’s dimension, although quantitatively representative of the population

Penyusutan dan Penurunan Nisbah C/N pada Vermicomposting Campuran Feses Sapi Perah dan Jerami Padi menggunakan Eisenia fetida

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui tingkat penyusutan dan penurunan nisbah C/N padavermicompostingcampuran feses sapi perah dan jerami padi menggunakan Eisenia fetida.  Penelitian dilaksanakan dengan menggunakan metode Rancangan Acak Lengkap (RAL).  Perlakuan yang diberikan adalah tiga perlakuan nisbah C/N yakni :   25  (T1), 30 (T2), dan 35 (T3).  Proses diawali dengan dekomposisi awal selama 7 hari, kemudian dilanjutkan dengan vermicompostingselama 15 hari.    Data dianalisis melalui sidik ragam dan untuk mengetahui perbedaan antar perlakuan dilakukan uji Duncan.  Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa : (1) Penyusutan selama dekomposisi awal berkisar antara 20,5 – 28,8 % dengan nisbah C/N mencapai 15,5-17,5. (2) Penyusutan selama vermicompostingberkisar antara 52,35 – 60,50 % dengan nisbah C/N mencapai 10,5 – 11,0.  

Italian standardization of the Apples Cancellation Test

Hemispatial neglect due to right parieto-temporo-frontal lesions has a negative impact on the success of rehabilitation, resulting in poor functional gain. Recent research has shown that different types of neglect can impact in a different way on rehabilitation outcomes. The availability of a sensitive test, useful for distinguishing egocentric and allocentric forms of neglect, may be clinically important as all current clinical instruments fail to distinguish between these forms of disturbance, yet they differentially predict outcome. The Apples Test is a new instrument useful to evaluate both egocentric and allocentric forms of neglect. In order to establish Italian norms for this diagnostic instrument the test was administered to a sample of 412 healthy people of both genders (201 M and 211 F), aged from 20 to 80 years enrolled from 14 different rehabilitation centers in Italy. Based on the data, we established pathological performance cut-offs for the accuracy score (total omission errors), the asymmetry score for egocentric neglect (omission error difference), the asymmetry score for allocentric neglect (commission error difference) and execution time. The usefulness of the Apples Test for diagnostic purposes is illustrated by presenting three patients with different forms of neglect (egocentric, allocentric and mixed neglect)

The influences and consequences of being digitally connected and/or disconnected to travellers

© 2017, The Author(s).Technological progress and tourism have worked in tandem for many years. Connectivity is the vehicle that drove the goal of technologically enhanced tourism experiences forward. This study, through an exploratory qualitative research identifies the factors that boost and/or distract travellers from obtaining a digitally enhanced tourism experience. Four factors can boost and/or distract travellers from being connected: (1) hardware and software, (2) needs and contexts, (3) openness to usage, and (4) supply and provision of connectivity. The research also analyses the positive and/or negative consequences that arise from being connected or disconnected. A Connected/Disconnected Consequences Model illustrates five forms of positive and/or negative consequences: (1) availability, (2) communication, (3) information obtainability, (4) time consumption, and (5) supporting experiences. A better understanding of the role and consequence of connectivity during the trip can enhance traveller experience

Protein kinase activity of phosphoinositide 3-kinase regulates cytokine-dependent cell survival

Extent: 14 p.The dual specificity protein/lipid kinase, phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), promotes growth factor-mediated cell survival and is frequently deregulated in cancer. However, in contrast to canonical lipid-kinase functions, the role of PI3K protein kinase activity in regulating cell survival is unknown. We have employed a novel approach to purify and pharmacologically profile protein kinases from primary human acute myeloid leukemia (AML) cells that phosphorylate serine residues in the cytoplasmic portion of cytokine receptors to promote hemopoietic cell survival. We have isolated a kinase activity that is able to directly phosphorylate Ser585 in the cytoplasmic domain of the interleukin 3 (IL-3) and granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) receptors and shown it to be PI3K. Physiological concentrations of cytokine in the picomolar range were sufficient for activating the protein kinase activity of PI3K leading to Ser585 phosphorylation and hemopoietic cell survival but did not activate PI3K lipid kinase signaling or promote proliferation. Blockade of PI3K lipid signaling by expression of the pleckstrin homology of Akt1 had no significant impact on the ability of picomolar concentrations of cytokine to promote hemopoietic cell survival. Furthermore, inducible expression of a mutant form of PI3K that is defective in lipid kinase activity but retains protein kinase activity was able to promote Ser585 phosphorylation and hemopoietic cell survival in the absence of cytokine. Blockade of p110α by RNA interference or multiple independent PI3K inhibitors not only blocked Ser585 phosphorylation in cytokine-dependent cells and primary human AML blasts, but also resulted in a block in survival signaling and cell death. Our findings demonstrate a new role for the protein kinase activity of PI3K in phosphorylating the cytoplasmic tail of the GM-CSF and IL-3 receptors to selectively regulate cell survival highlighting the importance of targeting such pathways in cancer.Daniel Thomas, Jason A. Powell, Benjamin D. Green, Emma F. Barry, Yuefang Ma, Joanna Woodcock, Stephen Fitter, Andrew C.W. Zannettino, Stuart M. Pitson, Timothy P. Hughes, Angel F. Lopez, Peter R. Shepherd, Andrew H. Wei, Paul G. Ekert and Mark A. Guthridg